


It's Magic, My Dear

by dancefantasy



Category: Assassin's Creed - All Media Types
Genre: Canon Bisexual Character, Canon Related, Fraternization, M/M, Magic Tricks, Unrealized Feelings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-29
Updated: 2021-01-29
Packaged: 2021-03-18 15:01:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,890
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28994118
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dancefantasy/pseuds/dancefantasy
Summary: As they get to know one another a little better, Maxwell Roth shows Jacob Frye a little bit of magic. Evie wonders if it's really more than what it seems.
Relationships: Jacob Frye/Maxwell Roth
Comments: 4
Kudos: 14





	It's Magic, My Dear

Jacob had a lot of fun that day as Maxwell Roth gave him more opportunities to sabotage Starrick's gang. Ending the lives of criminals (or even just turning them in) was always thrilling, alongside the benefit of weakening the Templar's control over the city. He liked the fast-paced action of it all, the danger. And he really liked that his new co-conspirator seemed to also have an affinity for the most explosive of feats, even if Roth mostly did the planning while Jacob was the one who carried out those plans. It worked well. Roth had once been Jacob's enemy, but they seemed to get along even better than Jacob did with his own twin sister those days.

But although Jacob and Roth were both a fan of rushing into their battles, things had taken a slower pace as they left the scene of their latest revenge crime that night. Instead of their usual quick goodbye, where Jacob would make his way home by running on rooftops as Roth watched in admiration, they strolled together through London alleyways in the vague direction of wherever they each were headed. It offered plenty of time for conversation, and Jacob allowed his curiosity to lead it.

"Say, what exactly do you do at the Alhambra? Run the show? Take part in the music?" he felt compelled to ask Roth, knowing he used the music hall as a front for his darker dealings but not much else of what it was all about. It was hard to be a man well-exposed to culture when he had spent his whole life busy training as an Assassin.

Roth seemed quite pleased to be asked such a question, proudly proclaiming, "Why, of course I run the show! That music hall couldn't keep standing without my presence!" He stopped walking and leaned closer to Jacob, quietly adding like a confession, "But I also perform. I've been a part of theatre my whole life; it's in my blood. Tell me; have you ever been to a magic show?"

Jacob shrugged. "Can't say I have."

Roth grinned widely. "Well! Allow me to give you a sample."

"What, are you going to pull a coin from behind my ear?" Jacob asked as if it was all a joke. It all sounded a bit silly, like little games children would play with one another.

"I very well could," an unperturbed Roth answered. He quickly reached behind the other man's ear to reveal a shiny new coin. Jacob laughed lightly, unimpressed, which Roth had anticipated from the way he had first asked about it. "Yes, yes, surely such sleight-of-hand is blasé for an Assassin like yourself. So, why don't I show you some _real_ magic?"

" _Real_ magic? What do you mean?"

Roth reached within his coat and pulled out a deck of cards. "I'm sure you're familiar with some card tricks, yes? Most so-called magicians only do the most petty of tricks where even a simple-minded man can guess how it was done. But I think I know one that will make you start to question what's real or not," he said as he mixed up the cards.

"That's a bold claim," Jacob replied. He knew some aspects of "magic" were real, like the Pieces of Eden, but those were serious tools of power. Magic didn't extend to such playthings. "Do your worst," he challenged Roth, not expecting much.

Roth obliged and fanned them out. "Pick a card, any card. Memorize it before putting it back."

Jacob obeyed, then watched closely as Roth seemed to shuffle the cards as ordinarily as possible, though it seemed never-ending. "You've been shuffling an awfully long time. Is this just some diversion for the real spectacle?"

"Oh, I could shuffle all night. I need to ensure your confidence that there is no way I could possibly guess your card's position in this deck."

"Well, I believe it." There hadn't seemed to be anything out of the ordinary about it yet.

Roth stopped, straightened the deck, and watched Jacob's face closely. "So, you'd be surprised if I said with one hundred percent conviction that I could have magicked your card to the top of the pack?"

"I suppose. I didn't see you slip it up your sleeve," Jacob answered skeptically.

Roth smiled once more. "Delightful. I do like to surprise you, boy." He flipped over the top card of the deck and showed it to Jacob. "Is that your card? The Jack of Spades?"

Pleasantly surprised, Jacob's face lifted. "Well, I'll be! Either you have incredible luck, or you just pulled an excellent trick on me!"

Roth nodded as he lifted the card up next to Jacob's face and mused, "The card even suits you. A few more scars and you'd look alike. Though you're far more handsome, of course."

"I suppose I am quite the looker," Jacob boasted, puffing up in pride at the unexpected compliment. But his mind quickly turned back to Roth's display of talent. "More importantly, how did you do that? I want to know the trick! I didn't see anywhere you could have pulled an illusion." He took the cards from the other man's hands to frantically look through them for any sign they were abnormal. However, they were completely average.

Roth gently pried Jacob's fingers off of the deck and put it back in his coat. "It's magic, my dear. No tricks, just London's finest magic. ...But rather _basic_ magic, I will note. You'll have to come to the Alhambra the next time we put on a performance so I can show you more impressive feats. If this mere example has you so excited, I can't wait to see your response to a real show! Perhaps next week?"

"I'd love to see it!" Jacob looked thrilled at the thought, as he hadn't seen anything that happened at the music hall besides Roth feeding his baby crow. Professional entertainment sounded like a gay time to be had. However, he and Roth had already made more pressing plans before this. "Is there any time for it? You mentioned we ought to look to ending Starrick's production lines. Surely that will take a while."

"We'll _make_ time. Nothing will get in the way of this," Roth said with a scowl before pausing to withdrew his pocket watch and check the hour. "However, you're right; we have things to do. I regret to realize I must get on my way, though parting is such a sweet sorrow. I best get to planning if I want to free up your schedule for an invitation to my next performance, darling Jacob."

"Yes, once I can rest easy knowing that Starrick is gone," Jacob reminded Roth of why they had teamed up in the first place.

"Indeed. And in that process, we shall be seeing a lot of each other! Revenge is a long game, Jacob. With a mutual vendetta against Crawford Starrick, my brains, your brawn... Why, together we'll be unstoppable! Our names will go down in history as a legendary pair!" Roth declared, holding out his arms triumphantly.

"I look forward to it!" Jacob agreed amicably.

"Right, then! I'll be sure to make it happen. We shall speak again soon, my boy!" Roth flashed one more grin at Jacob before continuing on his way.

Jacob watched him go, shaking his head in amusement. Being an Assassin had always been fun for a thrill-seeker like himself, but it had only become better when Roth had made the deal to work together. Even without magic tricks, there was an air of theatrics in every--

"Crikey!" Disturbed from his thoughts, Jacob yelped in fearful surprise as a figure unexpectedly dropped down next to him. As she took off her hood and revealed herself as his sister, he became even more flabbergasted. "Evie! What in blazes are you doing here? Were you spying on me?!" Jacob hated how guilty those few words made him sound, especially because he personally saw nothing wrong with what he had been up to. However, he knew that his twin sister could find a reason to get mad at him in just about any situation.

Evie crossed her arms, thinking he must have been quite distracted to not have noticed her on the rooftops. He shouldn't have allowed his guard to be lowered so much. "I only happened to be in the area," she explained before quickly changing the subject so that Jacob wouldn't just see her as some eavesdropper. "Better question: what are you doing fraternizing with Maxwell Roth of all people?!"

"He's turned his back on Starrick! We're working together to take down his gang."

Evie scoffed. Although that information was rather interesting, she was focused on other details. "It looked like more than that. What ever happened to 'Don't allow personal feelings to compromise the mission'?"

"That's rich, coming from you!" Jacob nearly laughed. "I'm sorry, in NO WAY is me getting to know a new help to our cause the same as you constantly batting your eyelashes at Henry Green instead of focusing on ridding London of the Templars."

"Really?" Evie challenged, doing her best to ignore what Jacob had just said about her. "Because you don't seem very focused on the job either! We don't have time to mess about with card games!"

Jacob rolled his eyes. "So, I can't have a few minutes of fun when you're likely spending half your days writing in your diary about how he smells like the finest Indian spices?" he said in a mocking imitation of her voice. "If you're going to waste your time, there are worse ways than with a real-life magician, Evie."  
  
Maxwell Roth was one of the most dangerous men in the city, and Jacob was starstruck by his simple card tricks? "Oh my stars, you really must like him to be so blind," Evie groaned.

"Of _course_ I like Roth! What is there not to like?" Jacob replied. He appreciated the extra chances to kill Templars that Roth's offer to cooperate had given him. Sure, the man was a bit shady and had plenty of eccentricities, but he was helping them save London in his own way devious way.

Evie saw something deeper behind it all. She was Jacob's twin; she could understand his behavior quite well. And from what she saw, she had to exclaim in exasperation, "You have terrible taste in men!"

However, those words didn't sound relevant in the slightest to Jacob. "What on earth are you getting on about?"

"Are you really so oblivious, or do you just like playing dumb?" Jacob shrugged in bafflement, causing Evie to laugh at the genuinely confused look on his face. She gave him a comforting pat on the shoulder and assured, "You'll figure it out one day, Jacob. And in the meantime, stop messing about so much. Things aren't going to go well if you keep working with Maxwell Roth. Don't make me say 'I told you so.'"

Doubtful, Jacob asked, "What could possibly go wrong?"

"My advice? Don't stick around to find out."

However, Jacob didn't like to listen. He was too charmed by the idea of more inside opportunities to weaken Starrick's gang. And the idea of witnessing more of Roth's magic. He would keep working with the man until things ended in success.

Or disaster.


End file.
